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sweet, though he s a little on the shy side. I like to bring him customers.
 Shy? You think he s shy?
 Yes. That s why he doesn t talk much. And he has the sweetest wife. Diane has a very bubbly
personality. Two adorable little girls, too.
Adorable? They had to take after their mother, then. He walked Savannah to her car.  Do you want
me to pick you up tonight?
 That would be nice. Thank you.
Wasn t she being polite? And distant.  Sure. What time?
 Six thirty? Cocktail hour is at seven.
 I ll be at your place at six thirty, then.
She got in her car and drove off, leaving Cole standing on the curb.
He didn t like this wall she constantly shoved up between them. Tonight, he was going to work on
that.
SEVERAL HOURS LATER COLE AND SAVANNAH HAD entered what would surely be the dullest night of his
life.
The event was being held at some fancy schmancy gallery in West County. But the benefit was for
the American Cancer Society, so he had no problem chunking out some money.
Maybe Savannah would take pity on him since he was in obvious misery. Sure, the tux fit fine, but
the shoes were uncomfortable as hell. He was more of a tennis shoes or boots kind of guy, not shiny
black pointy shoes. Maybe he could write a big fat check and they could get out of here early.
Though he had to admit, he could stand to spend a couple hours with Savannah. The silver dress
that clung to her curves and sparkled in the overhead chandeliers was as much of a work of art as all
the doodads being auctioned off tonight for charity. She d worn her hair up in some kind of twisty
thing, had put diamond studs in her ears, and wore no other jewelry. And she had on sexy silver-and-
crystal shoes that made her legs look a mile long. He wanted to be alone with her, have her wear
those shoes and nothing else.
He wondered what she wore under the dress. Maybe she could wear the shoes and her underwear.
Yeah, and maybe he needed to get his fantasies under control before his dick got hard.
She threaded her arm through his and pulled him aside, straightening his tie.  Okay, let s go through
this.
 I got it. Play nice. Don t insult anyone. Don t hit anyone. Don t cuss. I pretty much have the basic
manners thing down. You don t have to worry about me.
She cocked a pretty blonde brow at him.  It s my job to worry. Your image is at stake and this is a
very high-profile event. In case you haven t noticed, several sports figures will be at this event
tonight, along with the media.
 I already told you I d be on my best behavior.
 Don t engage the media. If you re asked a question, be benign.
Now it was his turn to raise a brow.  How, exactly, does someone act benign?
 You can answer football questions, or questions related to being with the Traders this season.
Behavioral questions you need to avoid.
 Avoid& how?
 For example Cole, do you think the reason Green Bay dumped you is because of your behavior?
 how are you going to answer that?
He scratched the side of his nose.  I don t suppose you d let me tell them to fuck off?
She looked horrified.  Definitely not. You ll tell them you enjoyed your time with Green Bay, and
you think they re a great organization, but it wasn t a good fit for either you or the team. Now your
focus is on the upcoming season with St. Louis.
 So you want me to deflect.
She nodded and patted his tie, raising her gaze to his.  Exactly. Don t engage in a pissing match
with the media. You ll never come out ahead. Only give them positive, quotable remarks. Never
denigrate your former teams.
 But 
She raised her hand.  It doesn t matter what you really think. State the positive, focus on the
Traders and this season. Get the media excited about St. Louis and you. If you re optimistic, they ll be
optimistic about you.
 I ll try.
 Good. I ll stick close to you so I can help you out if you need me to.
 Jesus, Savannah. This isn t my first time out in public. I think I can handle this. I ve been handling
it, in case you haven t noticed.
She gave him a dubious look. And okay, maybe she was right. He hadn t exactly been a champion
with interviews over the past couple years. He and the media weren t the best of friends. But he d
give it his best shot because it was clear this was important to Savannah.
 Let s go mingle, she said, plastering on a bright smile.
But as they wandered through the crowd, he could tell she was nervous. He wasn t sure he d ever
seen Savannah nervous. She was always so confident. But she kept glancing his way.
Did she think he was going to pick his nose in public? What kind of backwoods, uncouth redneck
did she think he was? He rolled his eyes.
If there was one thing Cole could do, it was work a room. These might not be his type of people,
but in the game of conversation he was never lacking.
They stopped at the bar. Savannah got a glass of chardonnay. Cole asked for water.
Grant Cassidy, the Traders quarterback, was also here tonight. Surrounded by media, he was
smiling and charming and always  on. Yeah, he was popular with the media and maybe Cole was
just a little bit jealous about that, but if the guys with the microphones and the cameras wanted to give
all their attention to pretty-boy Grant tonight, that was fine with him. The less spotlight on Cole, the
better.
In fact, he d be happy to fade into the background. All he wanted to do was play football, play it
well, and be left alone to let his performance speak for itself. That s all he d ever wanted.
Unfortunately, that wasn t Savannah s plan. She grabbed his arm and practically paraded him back
and forth in front of the media.
He finally dug in his heels and turned to her.  Really?
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